Pfizer’s dealmaking continues to accelerate, as the company is reportedly in talks to acquire Seagen, a biotech company with a number of promising cancer treatments, in a deal that could be worth more than $30bn.
The Covid booster
The news comes as Pfizer’s balance sheet is in a very healthy place. The company has seen its revenue grow to more than $100bn last year, as sales of its vaccine — which it developed in partnership with BioNTech — and Covid pill soared. That’s left the group with a cash balance that it has been deploying in earnest, with the ink barely dry on the company’s $5.4bn and $11.6bn acquisitions from last year.
It’s easy to see why Pfizer is eager to secure its future. If you strip out Covid products, Pfizer’s revenue would fall to $44bn last year — some ~$21bn below where it was in 2010. Additionally, the company is facing a “patent cliff”, as its exclusivity on blockbuster drugs such as Xtandi and Ibrance is set to expire by 2030 — which will create another ~$17bn hole in its sales.
